Modern automobiles have many electrical accessories and devices for providing transportation and comfort to passengers. Every solenoid, motor, and actuator in an automobile must be subject to the control of the operator or an operating system of the vehicle and must have a way to receive electrical power. This need for both power and control can rapidly lead to a profusion of wires and wire harnesses throughout the vehicle. Part of the profusion problem can be solved by placing some electrical devices on a bus, typically a wiring harness connected to a plurality of devices rather than a single device.
Another aspect of the situation is that such an accessory or a system in an automobile may have a plurality of a single part, such as a number of identical motors or actuators on a bus. That is, a number of actuators may be tied together on a bus, each located in a different physical location, each with its own function peculiar to its location. Because the parts or the actuators are identical, it may be wasteful to manufacture and stock a plurality of part numbers, each part number comprising an actuator and a software program embedded in an electronic device within the actuator, and containing the operating instructions needed for that actuator to function in one particular location. Even though the parts are physically identical, each actuator differs in its need for unique software or controls according to its location and function. It would be desirable to manufacture and stock only a single actuator with a standard program embedded, rather than a plurality of actuators that differ only in the installed software or firmware, and the actuator's functional position in the automobile. Each actuator also needs to select the proper bits from the command bitstream on the bus, and thus each actuator needs to know its address on the bus.
The present invention is directed to an improved procedure for determining the location or address of an actuator in an automobile system without unnecessary wiring and without the burden of manufacturing, purchasing and stocking a plurality of actuators which differ only in their installed software for a particular functional position in the automobile.